Salam
by NostalgieMalaak
Summary: 1st in the 'Peace' Arc. The five pilots find themselves together for the first time in a safe house before a mission.


Salam

By NostalgieMalaak

Warnings: some violence, canon but also AU (due to the fact that it's set out in the series how the pilots actually meet each other. I think it's funny that they all seem to dislike each other at first!)

Notes: I like safe house fics, but so many of them just play off stereotypes. I wanted to write a short piece using my take of the Gundam boys…and here it is.

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The wind had picked up significantly in the past hour. It was highly unlikely that anyone would want to stay out in the elements without protection for long. However, that was precisely where five teenage boys found themselves.

The wind whipped snow into their pale tired faces and shrieked past their numb ears. In single file they trudged along trying to ignore aching muscles and empty stomachs. There was no quitting or resting on this hike. To do such would be admitting defeat in front of the others. It simply wouldn't happen.

The leader of the line stopped abruptly, raising his wind chapped face and staring at a small structure that had just appeared over the horizon. The others took note of it and continued on as before. No sense in trying to hurry. They would reach it when they reached it. Wasting energy now was useless.

Nevertheless it was a draining torturous walk to the refuge.

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Five pairs of eyes stared across the smoking fire that had been laid in the center of the dirt-lined cabin. Each made a note of the others in the circle, not letting any glance linger longer on one or another. It was a test of sorts. Who would break the silence? Each silently vowed that it would not be him. It was always better to wait and size up the competition, to see who would first reveal a weakness.

A slow steady grin began to spread across the face of one. Another let out a slight snicker. At this a third's mouth twitched upward in a mocking smile. It was enough though. The five soldiers relaxed a tiny bit. They all took note of it.

Hours past and night descended on the make-shift camp. The five soldiers were stretched out on the floor facing the dwindling fire. It had steadily grown colder as the day drew to a close and slight shivers began to escape the boys' tight muscular control. Breath puffed out in small white clouds in front of their faces. One sat up stiffly to throw another small stick, one of only few remaining, on the flames.

Slowly they each allowed themselves to drift into uneasy sleep, making sure that at least one person was always on watch. In unsecured territory it was always better to be safe than sorry.

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Dawn broke piercingly cold over the frozen countryside.

Five boys stretched out numb arms and legs and tried not to let the desperate cold and long night of sleeping on a hard floor show in their movements.

One pulled a ration bar from the pocket of his light jacket. The others looked on with dispassion in their faces and hunger in their eyes. In no time the one soldier had consumed the small bit of food.

"Thanks for sharing," one of the boys drawled out. He warmed long fingers over the still glowing embers of the fire, careful not to let his braided hair fall into the ashes. He smirked at the dark-haired teen across from him who merely glared back.

"Maybe you should have come prepared if you're so hungry," spoke another.

"As should you," a Chinese boy spat.

They were quiet again for a time. The same long-haired youth broke the silence for the second time.

"So…where are you all from?"

"Does it matter?"

"Gees, just trying to make a little small talk."

"It's a frivolous and stupid question."

"Well how about I just guess then, huh?" When he received no reply the talkative youth decided to hazard a few guesses.

"You're Chinese, right?" he asked, nodding to the black-haired youth who nodded his head once curtly. "From L5?" Another nod.

"An you…hmmm…Pacific Islands? With those blue eyes though…I dunno…"

"L1. From the Japanese quarter."

"Ah, well then. And you blondie, with that English accent I'm going to have to say Britain. And you with the weird hair I'll say somewhere in the Mediterranean. Am I right?"

"I don't know where I'm from originally, therefore your guess is as good as mine," the taller boy replied.

"You'll have to guess again for me, I'm afraid," the blonde said with a small smile.

"Hm, well that's tricky then. Ireland? Or maybe Germany with that hair and those eyes. Could very well be from any European country I suppose. Or maybe South Africa. I don't know. Why don't you tell me."

"That would take all the fun out of it," he laughed.

"Why don't you give me a hint. What's your name?"

Taking a few shallow breaths that seemed to freeze as they hit the air the other boy took a minute to consider. Should he tell this new comrade? friend? his name when he knew nothing about the other boy? So far the boy with the braid was at the advantage. He had acquired knowledge from them without revealing any himself. Very smart.

"How about you tell me where you're from first and then I'll tell you my name," the blonde conceded.

"Fair enough. I'm from L2, American side. Now, your name…?"

"Quatre."

"Quatre? That's not a name that's a number," he scowled at the other.

Quatre just shrugged, a small pained smile on his face.

"Fine. I guess I really shouldn't say anything seeing how my name's Duo."

Quatre raised an eyebrow at this. Duo chuckled and scratched his neck in a nervous gesture.

"I am Chang Wufei," the Chinese boy stated. Both of the other named boys smiled in gratitude.

"Well! Now we're really getting somewhere. How 'bout you two? Care to step up to the plate?"

"Trowa Barton."

"Heero Yuy."

"Damn," the American swore, "What's with everyone getting a codename? I should have asked for one too…"

"My name's not a code name," Quatre said trying to be conciliatory. Duo just looked at him skeptically.

"You mean to say someone actually named you 'four'? On purpose?!"

Quatre shrugged again feeling uncomfortable with all the attention on him.

"Well, alright. I guess that means you must be French or something."

"No."

The soldiers once again lapsed into silence. Duo was busy scrutinizing Quatre for any signs of what his place of origin could be. Quatre was again feeling uncomfortable under that penetrating stare. The others looked on, seeming to be bored with the whole thing.

Their impassivity lasted only a minute. A nearby explosion rocked the small cabin and the ground underneath. With the speed and grace of familiarity the five were armed and spread in a tight defensive position around the walls of the cabin, taking care to keep their backs faced away from the boarded up windows and molding door.

Another explosion, this one closer than the last. Bright strobe-like light filtered through the many cracks between the boards of the house.

The soldiers slowed their breathing into normal rhythms and let tense shoulder muscles relax. The shuddering explosions had caught them unawares, but now they were back into routine.

As if realizing the boys' acceptance of the situation the shelling became fierce, trees and earth exploding into the air as missile after missile was launched into the forested area. All noise was drowned out by the incessant bangs of the missiles exploding overhead.

Just as suddenly as the attack began it was finished. The five boys waited for a few more still minutes before taking their seats on the floor again.

"Just a random deployment?"

"Perhaps. They've been shelling a wide range of coordinates in this area since the zero-one Gundam was seen in this forest."

"Speaking of which, where is your Gundam?" asked Duo, turning a smirk on the pilot who identified himself as Heero.

"Like I would tell you," the Japanese youth replied.

"How are you going to get back to it?" asked Quatre. "If this mission goes according to plan there won't be any time for you to make the hike back into the forest to retrieve it. You'll be captured for sure!"

Heero blinked slowly at the blonde and then turned his attention to Trowa. "Do you still have the explosives on you?"

"Of course. They're vital to the completion of the mission. I wouldn't have left them behind, even in the mess you and zero-two left in my wake."

"Weellll! Excuse me for raining on your parade! Instead of dumping on me, you should be thanking me! If Heero and I hadn't destroyed those suits back there you'd've been long gone!" Duo replied, his tone caustic.

"And yet, if you had completed the mission without so much disturbance all of us would have been able to make it to the drop it point _with _our Gundams," Wufei said with a bitter smirk.

Quatre quickly interrupted, ending the dispute. "Enough. Arguing about past mistakes isn't getting us anywhere. We need to figure out how we're going to complete the upcoming mission without getting in each others' way or killing each other."

"Agreed," Trowa seconded with a nod.

"Let's take stock of what we have then. See what strengths each of us has and how we can use those to our advantage." Quatre looked each pilot in the eye, trying to gauge how well they would take to being given an order. From past experience they didn't seem like the type who would be easily commanded. Seeing just this in each one's face, along with a reluctance to share anymore personal information with virtual strangers, Quatre sat back a little. His backing off from the leadership position seemed to put the other pilots more at ease.

"Zero-two, you go first," Heero said.

"Why don't you go first?" Duo shot back.

Realizing that direct orders weren't going to work with this particular group of soldiers, Quatre decided to attempt a little indirect leadership.

"Well, I for one don't have that much physical combat experience, though I have been trained at infiltration. I'm a good shot and could probably fit into places that you all couldn't. Air ducts and the like."

"I too have been trained for infiltration," Trowa reluctantly added.

"I'm a champion lock pick! You need into somewhere, I'm the guy to call. 'Sides that, most my expertise is in piloting, though I can hold my own in a fist fight," Duo said, seemingly no longer troubled with relating information about himself.

"I am highly trained in martial arts, but I have little experience with infiltration. I prefer a more direct route," Wufei said firmly, pride evident in his posture.

"I have been trained for anything that may come up in a mission," Heero supplied curtly.

"Then it's clear what we should do at this point. Heero and Duo should infiltrate the base first and disable the security system. Trowa and I can then take out the computer mainframe, leaving Wufei to begin placing explosives in the most vital areas. After the five of us have retreated from the base the bombs can be detonated. This should cause enough of a distraction, combined with the downed systems, to allow Heero and Duo to escape back to where they hid their Gundams. The three of us can evacuate to our respective pick-up points." Quatre laid down their plan of action quickly, leaving the details to the discretion of the individual pilots.

Seeing the logic in the blonde's plans the other four quickly agreed. There was no need to say that failure or capture were not options. They may be forced to work together on this one mission, but after that all bets were off. They were free agents working towards their own personal goals.

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The boys once again settled down to rest and conserve energy until nightfall. The base outlined in their mission reports was close to their current location and little time would be required to reach it. The fierce shelling of that morning had been from the base's own armament.

A strange hostile silence settled over the five young soldiers. With the mission once again clear in their minds what little connection they made earlier had evaporated. They were once again unknown soldiers who's passing would be marked by no one.

Hunger and cold made the boys restless and ready for the mission to be over. The unexpectedness of the nearing attack had left them all more unprepared than they would ever admit. They each retreated into personal thoughts of times of comfort or home. Suddenly those places seemed very far away.

"You never did guess," Quatre said softly.

Duo cocked his head towards the blonde, a small smile creeping onto his face.

"Austrian," Wufei declared, startling everyone. Quatre laughed softly and shook his head.

"Icelandic?" Trowa ventured

Another shake of his head.

"Scottish." Heero said, a very serious expression marring his face.

The other four just looked at each other and back to the stoic Japanese boy before bursting into laughter. Heero scowled but one side of his mouth was quirked up in a tiny smile.

"Ya, I could just see that. Beam me up Quatty!" Duo snorted.

"Danish?"

"What, like the pastry?"

"No, like Hamlet the Great Dane."

"Yes, Quatre certainly does have canine qualities."

"I'd say more 'Quat' qualities."

By this point all five young boys were clutching their sides with laughter. Realizing just how odd the whole situation was brought on more rounds of coarse laughter. It was the first time in a while any of them had let something humorous affect them.

When they had gained control over themselves once again the hostility in the air was gone. In its place was something bordering on understanding.

The five pilots gathered together in that drafty cabin were completely unique in their current state. And though they came from vastly different backgrounds they had all come together under the common banner of Gundam Pilot.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm glad we finally all met up with one another," Duo said with a smile.

"It will be advantageous for our mission. As a group we will be able to amass more damage," Heero grudgingly admitted.

"And it is nice to have comrades once again," Trowa said softly, his strange hair covering his almost shy expression.

"I have no need for comrades…but I suppose just this once we can work out an understanding," Wufei conceded.

They then huddled down into the scant clothing they had on to wait out the long afternoon.

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Night fell quickly over the forested terrain. The five searched the cabin and removed all signs that they had been there before moving out.

On each boys' person were hidden a multitude of small arms and explosive devices. Their eyes were set on the target ahead of them, their faces grim.

As they settled into a small circle on the perimeter of the base to confer one last time a harsh wind picked up, nearly obscuring the last words spoken to the assembled group.

"Salam, my friends."

"What does that mean Quatre?"

"It means peace in my language. I wish it upon all of you and hope that we will soon meet again."

"Salam Quatre. May Allah protect you, my Arab friend," Duo pronounced solemnly.

The other three repeated the foreign word to each other, hoping that some day the word would be spoken at a celebration instead of a battle.

_End_

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Comments and questions appreciated.

-Nostalgie


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